Ps 61:9

“"But foolish are the sons of people." The psalmist knew that not all follow his instruction or permit themselves to hope in God, but that they have their hope in the follies of life. Therefore, he says, "But vain are the sons of people, the sons of people are liars." Why vain? Because they are liars. Where, especially, is their deceit proved? "In the balances used for defrauding," he says. In what sort of balances does he mean? All people do not weigh in the balance, do they? All people are not wool sellers or butchers, are they? Or do not handle gold or silver, or in general themselves deal with these materials that the merchants are accustomed to exchange by means of scales and weights, do they? But there is a large class of artisans, which does not need scales at all for its work; and there are many sailors and many who are always engaged about courts of justice and the duty of ruling, among whom there is deceit, but the deceit is not practiced through scales. What, then, does he mean? That there is a certain balance constructed in the interior of each of us by our Creator, on which it is possible to judge the nature of things. "I have set before you life and death, good and evil," two natures contrary to each other; balance them against each other in your own tribunal; weigh accurately which is more profitable to you: to choose a temporary pleasure and through it to receive eternal death, or having chosen suffering in the practice of virtue, to use it to attain everlasting delights.”

“Thus, no one is able to see the perilous traps before he falls into them. In the same way, Satan, hostile to us from the beginning, sneaks into the shadows of worldly pleasures that grow thickly enough about the road of life to hide the brigand while he plots against us. There he lurks in secret and spreads his nets for our destruction. If, then, we would safely traverse the road of life lying before us, and offer to Christ our body and soul alike free from the shame of wounds and receive the crown for this victory, we must always and everywhere keep the eyes of our soul wide open, holding in suspicion everything that gives pleasure. We must unhesitatingly pass by such things, without allowing our thoughts to rest in them, even if we think that we see gold lying before us in heaps, ready to be picked up by any who so desire. "If riches abound," says the Scripture, "set not your heart on them." We must pay no heed, even if the earth buds forth every kind of delicacy and offers luxurious dwellings to our gaze, for "our citizenship is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ." Nor should we take notice when dancing and merrymaking and reveling and banquets ringing with the sound of the flute are offered for our enjoyment, for the Scripture says, "Vanity of vanities, and all is vanity."”

“Then he brings up a decision for all that was said, not now from his own words but one that he heard from God. "God has spoken once, these two things have I heard," he says. And let it not disturb anyone that what was said is, as it were, incredible, namely, that God spoke once and the prophet heard two things. For it is possible for someone to speak once but for the things spoken on the one occasion to be many. In fact, when a certain person met someone once, he discussed many things. The one who heard his words is able to say, "He talked with me once, but he spoke about many things." This is what was meant on the present occasion, the manifestation of God occurred to me once, but there are two matters about which he talked. He did not say, "God spoke of one thing, but I heard these two." If he had, the statement would seem to have some discrepancy in it. What were the two things that he heard? "That power belongs to God, and mercy to you, O Lord." God is powerful, he says, in judgment, and likewise merciful. Therefore do not trust in iniquity, and do not hand yourself over to riches. Do not choose vanity; do not carry around the corrupt lawcourt of your soul. Knowing that our Lord is mighty, fear his strength and do not despair of his kindness. Now, in order that we may not do wrong, fear is good; and in order that he who has once slipped into sin may not throw himself away through despair, the hope of mercy is good. For power belongs to God, and mercy is from him.”

“"Nevertheless, vain are the sons of men, and liars are the sons of men in the balances, in order that they may deceive, being at one because of vanity" [Psalm 62:9]. Certainly many men there are: behold there is that one man, that one man that was cast forth from the multitude of guests. [Matthew 22:11] They conspire, they all seek things temporal, and they that are carnal things carnal, and for the future they hope them, whosoever do hope: even if because of variety of opinions they are in division, nevertheless because of vanity they are at one. Divers indeed are errors and of many forms, and the kingdom against itself divided shall not stand: [Matthew 12:25] but alike in all is the will vain and lying, belonging to one king, with whom into fire everlasting it is to be thrown headlong [Matthew 25:41] — "these men because of vanity are at one." And for them see how He thirsts, see how He runs in thirst.”

“Just as all men with everything earthly upon which they rely are perishable, so also the purely earthly form which the new kingship has assumed carries within itself the germ of ruin; and God will decide as Judge, between the dethroned and the usurpers, in accordance with the relationship in which they stand to Him. This is the internal connection of the third group with the two preceding ones. By means of the strophe vv. 10-13, our Psalm is brought into the closest reciprocal relationship with Psa 39:1-13. Concerning בּני־אדם and בּני־אישׁ vid., on Psa 49:3; Psa 4:3. The accentuation divides Psa 62:10 quite correctly. The Athnach does not mark בּמאזנים לעלות as an independent clause: they are upon the balance לעלות, for a going up; they must rise, so light are they (Hengstenberg). Certainly this expression of the periphrastic future is possible (vid., on Psa 25:14; Psa 1:1-6 :17), still we feel the want here of the subject, which cannot be dispensed within the clause as an independent one. Since, however, the combining of the words with what follows is forbidden by the fact that the infinitive with ל in the sense of the ablat. gerund. always comes after the principal clause, not before it (Ew. 280, d), we interpret: upon the balances ad ascendendum = certo ascensuri, and in fact so that this is an attributive that is co-ordinate with כּזב. Is the clause following now meant to affirm that men, one and all, belong to nothingness or vanity (מן partitivum), or that they are less than nothing (מן comparat.)? Umbreit, Stier, and others explain Isa 40:17 also in the latter way; but parallels like Isa 41:24 do not favour this rendering, and such as Isa 44:11 are opposed to it. So also here the meaning is not that men stand under the category of that which is worthless or vain, but that they belong to the domain of the worthless or vain. The warning in Psa 62:11 does not refer to the Absalomites, but, pointing to these as furnishing a salutary example, to those who, at the sight of the prosperous condition and joyous life on that side, might perhaps be seized with envy and covetousness. Beside בּטח בּ the meaning of הבל בּ is nevertheless not: to set in vain hope upon anything (for the idea of hoping does not exist in this verb in itself, Job 27:12; Jer 2:5, nor in this construction of the verb), but: to be befooled, blinded by something vain (Hitzig). Just as they are not to suffer their heart to be befooled by their own unjust acquisition, so also are they not, when the property of others increases (נוּב, root נב, to raise one's self, to mount up; cf. Arabic nabata, to sprout up, grow; nabara, to raise; intransitive, to increase, and many other verbal stems), to turn their heart towards it, as though it were something great and fortunate, that merited special attention and commanded respect. Two great truths are divinely attested to the poet. It is not to be rendered: once hath God spoken, now twice (Job 40:5; Kg2 6:10) have I heard this; but after Psa 89:36 : One thing hath God spoken, two things (it is) that I have heard; or in accordance with the interpunction, which here, as in Psa 12:8 (cf. on Psa 9:16), is not to be called in question: these two things have I heard. Two divine utterances actually do follow. The two great truths are: (1) that God has the power over everything earthly, that consequently nothing takes place without Him, and that whatever is opposed to Him must sooner or later succumb; (2) that of this very God, the sovereign Lord (אדני), is mercy also, the energy of which is measured by His omnipotence, and which does not suffer him to succumb upon whom it is bestowed. With כּי the poet establishes these two revealed maxims which God has impressed upon his mind, from His righteous government as displayed in the history of men. He recompenses each one in accordance with his doing, κατὰ τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ, as Paul confesses (Rom 2:6) no less than David, and even (vid., lxx) in the words of David. It shall be recompensed unto every man according to his conduct, which is the issue of his relationship to God. He who rises in opposition to the will and order of God, shall feel God's power (עז) as a power for punishment that dashes in pieces; and he who, anxious for salvation, resigns his own will to the will of God, receives from God's mercy or loving-kindness (חסד), as from an overflowing fulness, the promised reward of faithfulness: his resignation becomes experience, and his hoping attainment.”